


Grime

by KellinJoJo



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Canon Universe, First Meetings, M/M, Sexual Tension, if you squint the right way, not really romantic or ship related honestly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-20 17:00:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30008064
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KellinJoJo/pseuds/KellinJoJo
Summary: The first meeting, but this time the roles are reversed.
Relationships: Levi Ackerman/Erwin Smith
Comments: 3
Kudos: 18





	Grime

**Author's Note:**

> So this idea has been floating around in my head for probably months now. I'm just now getting to actually writing it and part of me feels like I didn't do it enough justice. Regardless, I hope you all enjoy it because it was fun to write them in each other's shoes!

Never had Levi imagined he would be in the Underground, but turned out there was a first time for everything considering he had been zipping through the cramped buildings for what felt like hours. Truthfully he wasn’t sure what he had been expecting the place to look like but it definitely was not this. It was home to the lowest class citizens in all of the walls and that much was evident by the rampant poverty that seemed to cling onto every inch of the city. The citizens were dreadful to look at because they evoked such a strong sense of pity in him that he decided to avoid their existence entirely.

Not to mention the entire place was overwhelming on nearly all his senses. The place was darker than what he and his men were used to since the city was lit by lamplight rather than sunlight. Their eyes had a hard time adjusting and he’d watch some of the corps soldiers nearly fly into buildings due to the lack of light. The worst of it all was the smell. Levi’s own hometown had been poor and unsightly, but it made this shit hole shine like a diamond in comparison. 

Down here every scent seemed to mix together in the worst way possible and at first it had nearly knocked him to his knees. It was nothing but human waste mingling with the dampness of the rock around them. It only got worse once they started to get to the populations of people. The scent of smoke, cheap alcohol, and sweat filled his nose and it smelled worse than anything he’d ever smelled before and he was well accustomed to the stench of death from all the expeditions outside the walls.

Flying through the roads and alleyways only seemed to make the scents around them worse. The breeze filtered it to the point that he knew everything would cling to his hair and clothes. There was no way he would ever be able to get it out of his clothes. 

Despite his disdain for the city surrounding him, his first priority was to catch the blond they had been sent to retrieve. The Military Police had been unable to catch him for what sounded like years now and with the new intel that this man was incredibly intelligent...the Survey Corps wanted him bad. So that led to the decision to send Levi’s squad and Mike’s squad down to the underground in order to catch the man and bring him back up. Shadis had made it very clear that they were not to return to base empty handed. 

Usually Levi liked a challenge but this game the blond was playing with them was enough to make him see red. It felt like every time they were about to have the man cornered he came up with a new route in his head and took off before the formations could get him. Levi had only gotten close to him once but he had darted off down an alley before he even knew what was happening. 

It was obvious that the Survey Corps members were entirely out of their depth down here and the other was taking full advantage of that. The soldiers were used to the wide open spaces of the world outside the walls while he was used to the cramped buildings that didn’t allow for much maneuvering. Not to mention it was abundantly clear that the other had managed to hone incredible skill on the ODM gear and knew the entire city like the back of his hand. 

At this point Levi figured he would either run out of gas soon enough or Mike’s squad could get a handle on him. Truthfully the former seemed like the more plausible answer, until he watched a soldier from Mike’s squad come barrelling out of an alleyway and knock right into the blond. Not even a second or two later soldiers from Mike’s squad zipped in so they could grab a hold of the two figures before they could collide with a building or the ground. 

Levi could feel some of the tension ease from his body as he watched the soldier with the blond get to the ground and then force him down. There wasn’t much of a struggle as they manhandled him into a kneeling position. That made him hopeful that this would go rather smooth since he hardly had the patience at the moment. 

Levi swung down and landed with ease before pulling the hood of his cloak down to shake his hair out and to make his face visible for the other. His footsteps were even as he walked around to the front of the blond in order to look him in his face only to stop when he saw the vivid blue that seemed to stare right into him and analyze his entire being. 

“Took you long enough,” is all the man says as he offers the slightest bit of a smirk which earns a grunt from Mike. Levi holds a hand up to signal for Mike to lay off before he’s walking forward only to stop right at the edge of the puddle the man is kneeling in. 

For a moment Levi stayed silent and just took in the other. Despite being a resident of the underground he appeared to be in good health...a little on the smaller side of things in terms of muscle mass. The clothes on his body seemed a bit too big or like they had once fit, but with the way things worked in the underground Levi imagined that this man was probably underweight for his height. 

Dirt seemed to cling to the skin on his face and his neck and there even seemed to be grit in the flaxen hair atop his head. A healing bruise sat on the apple of his left cheek and a split rand down the center of his bottom lip...seemed like he had more mental strength than physical strength. 

Content with his size up of the man, Levi crossed his arms over his chest and peered down his nose so he could finally look into his eyes, “Seems like you know your way around...however, that won’t do you much good anymore since you’re coming with us.”

The smirk that had been settled on his lips slowly melted into a frown at the rude awakening. Thick brows pulled together in a tightly knit furrow that made clear blue eyes darken under their shadow. The calculating gaze turned cold as he stared right into Levi’s own unamused stare. In that moment Levi wasn't sure if he had ever seen such expressive eyes before. 

“Like hell,” is all the blond offered and Levi could feel a sneering grin form on his lips as he looked down on the man. With a hum he pursed his lips and looked over to Mike. 

The two looked at each other before Mike quirked a brow, waiting for Levi to make his point, “then if he won’t go with us, suppose we could just turn him over to the Military Police until he’s ready? How many counts do they have him for?” 

Mike merely snorted and gave a shrug of his shoulders, “Too many to remember...but I’m sure they’d have fun with him.” 

The blond just glared at Levi as he listened to the two mock him. His nails dug into his palm and all he wanted was to break away and get out of there. Levi had seen the exact look on his face before back in his hometown.

“So what’s it going to be,” Levi asked and gave a nod to Mike who reached down to grab a fistful of blond hair, only to yank his head back at an uncomfortable angle. The man grunted but kept his jaw clenched in order to keep a pained noise from breaking through. After ripping his eyes from the tendon straining against the pale skin of the blond’s neck, he took a careful step forward into the puddle, deciding his boots needed to be cleaned anyways, “You coming with us or going with those MP bastards?” 

Without really thinking, Levi reached down grabbing his face roughly in his hand. A wince settled onto his face as Levi’s thumb and index finger dug into the skin of his cheek with his nails scratching into the skin. Mike let go of the hair but with Levi’s hold on his face his head didn’t move at all. The thought of his nails leaving marks on the skin of his face was enough to make a hum settle in his chest before he spoke, “I don’t really think you have much to gamble with right now do you?” 

Silence lingered between the two of them and it’s clear that the other is weighing his options. Underground criminals never stood a chance with the MPs and they both knew that. Levi could feel his jaw clench and it only made his smirk widen. 

“Fine,” the voice that comes out is slightly muffled due to Levi’s hold on his jaw but they’re clear all the same.

Slim fingers curled tighter against his jaw before letting him go with a rough motion causing his head to slingback, “Good.” The feeling of dirt on his fingers leads to him digging his handkerchief from the pocket of his jacket in order to wipe the grim away. His eyes didn't look up from the white cloth as he spoke up again, “Got a name?”

“You came down here without knowing my name?” he asked without missing a beat as Mike roughly grabbed his shoulder to hoist him to his feet. The blond moved awkwardly to stand and this was the first time Levi had realized how much taller he was. In the air he seemed tall but not this much. It was infuriating that now Levi was the one having to crane his neck up in order to see the blue of the other’s eyes. 

“It wasn’t important at the time,” Levi quipped and stuffed the cloth into his pocket, “now it is.” 

The blond looked at him for a hard moment and he clicked his tongue before clearing his throat, “Erwin. Erwin Smith.” 

The name rolled around in Levi’s head for a moment before he nodded, “Alright Smith, Welcome to the Survey Corps.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed please leave a kudos or comment, and as always please don't hesitate to leave a comment or suggestion to make my writing better!


End file.
